Lawmakers set to trade partisan punches over taxes

April 16, 2012|Kim Dixon | Reuters

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama and congressional Republicans square off this week over tax hikes for millionaires and tax cuts for businesses, with little expected to be accomplished beyond the winning of political points.

Although chances are slim to none that any measure will become law ahead of the November 6 general election, the skirmishes will give voters a preview of debates they will hear over the next seven months.

Obama and his fellow Democrats are arguing that raising taxes on the rich will help reduce deficits and bring more fairness to the tax code. Congressional Republicans are pushing a much different narrative of tax cuts - even if they add to deficits - as a way of creating jobs.

As Americans scurry to file tax returns by Tuesday, the Senate on Monday evening will debate legislation known as the Buffett Rule, which would require households earning more than $1 million to pay at least a 30-percent tax rate.

Central to Obama's "tax fairness" re-election campaign theme, the rule is named after billionaire Warren Buffett, who supports it and famously complains that he pays a lower effective tax rate than his secretary.

Solidly opposed by Republicans who argue raising taxes will hurt the fragile economy, the Buffett Rule bill being offered by Democrats is not expected to clear a procedural vote in the Senate on Monday, when 60 out of 100 votes would be needed. Democrats hold only a slim majority in the chamber.

"I do think it is an important message for Washington to send to middle-class Americans," said Senator Sheldon Whitehouse, a Democrat sponsoring the legislation. "Even if we come up short, we'll keep pushing this issue all year long."

CLASS WARFARE?

Republicans say the measure will do nothing to solve the larger problem of deficits and unemployment.

"We have a president that seems more interested in pitting people against each other than he is in doing anything," said Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell.

He was hitting on a Republican theme that raising taxes on the rich was tantamount to class warfare.

On Thursday Republicans - in firm control the U.S. House of Representatives - are expected to debate and likely approve a bill to give a one-year, 20-percent tax deduction on business income to owners of businesses with fewer than 500 employees.

Republicans are portraying that tax cut as one for "small businesses," a group they say the Buffett Rule will harm

Democrats say the legislation will add to already huge budget deficits, since Republicans do not include any measures to offset the $46 billion revenue loss. And they cite studies showing that the tax cut will mainly go to those with incomes over $200,000 a year.

That measure is not likely to make it through the Senate.

BATTLE ESCALATING

The battle over taxes has been escalating for weeks with the White House speaking nearly daily about the Buffett Rule.

The Obama campaign played offense last week by releasing the president's tax returns several days before the deadline, to put pressure on Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney.

Obama and his wife paid about 20.5 percent of their income in taxes in 2011, compared to an estimated 15.4 percent rate paid by the Romney's.

Romney, however, has asked for an extension to file his taxes.

A Gallup poll out on Monday said that Americans are split fairly evenly between those who say their federal tax bill is fair and those who say they pay too much.

But when asked specifically about how the wealthy are taxed, about 60 percent back some kind of Buffett Rule, Gallup's surveys have found.

"It is a robust finding across whichever polls that ask, you usually get 60 percent plus that say, 'yes, higher income are paying too little,'" Frank Newport, editor in chief of Gallup polling, said.

The polling, telephone interviews with about 1,000 adults, has a margin of error of 4 percentage points.